Types of Advisors You Can Meet With:
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Undergraduate Major Advisors (or UMAs) help you navigate the rules and requirements of the English major, and they have access to and can process your electronic records.
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Faculty Major Advisors (FMAs) serve as intellectual mentors.
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The Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) discusses the same issues as the FMA and offers you similar sorts of guidance. She can also help with major requirements.
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Peer Advisors share their knowledge of and experiences with English major courses, extracurriculars and student groups and campus resources.
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Letters & Sciences (L&S) advisors answer non-major-specific academic questions.
Undergraduate Major Advisors:
Undergraduate Major Advisors (UMAs) provide supportive and individualized advising to prospective and current undergraduates in English.
The Undergraduate Major Advisors help you navigate the rules and requirements of the English major and minor, declare the major, petition to transfer courses from other departments or schools, answer questions about department deadlines and more! UMAs also have access to the student systems that carry out the technical and administrative processing of your records.
All UMAs offer drop-in and scheduled advising sessions — both in person and online. You can also contact us by email at english_advising@berkeley.edu
Bridget can help with general major requirements and Honors Program questions. Bridget has B.A. in English from Trinity College and a Ph.D. in English from the University of Virginia. A lifelong student of literature, she loves drawing on her experience to help English majors explore their interests and connect with the department.
Schedule a meeting with Bridget!
Halle can help with general major questions, and she specializes in enrollment, transfer credits, and the application processes for Creative Writing, the Honors Program, and DeCals. Halle has a B.A. in English from UC Berkeley and an M.A. in English from Georgetown University. Having been a first-generation transfer student and graduate herself, Halle is passionate about supporting access-oriented initiatives and is excited to continue working with students at Cal.
Schedule a meeting with Halle!
Hannah can help with general major requirements, and she specializes in course evaluations, grades and incompletes, and undergraduate prizes. Hannah has a B.A. in Linguistics and French and an M.A. in French literature from UC Berkeley. She’s been very fortunate to work with undergraduates in the humanities at UC Berkeley, Université Paris Nanterre, and Northwestern University.
Schedule a Meeting with Hannah!
The Director of Undergraduate Studies, Kathleen Donegan welcomes you to the department and is here to discuss the same issues as the FMA and to offer you similar sorts of guidance. In addition, like the UMAs, the DUS can answer the questions you have about the details and requirements of the major or minor (but she cannot process your electronic records). She makes the decisions on student petitions for transferring courses from other departments and schools and can therefore advise you on that subject. Finally, the DUS can also talk to you about the department course offerings for the current academic year and possibly the next. Students are encouraged to drop in on her office hours, email her for an appointment, or ask questions by email. She can be reached at english_dus@berkeley.edu
Professor Lee is Available Tuesdays 11 am - 1 pm in-person or via Zoom, with sign-ups. He can be reached at stevenlee@berkeley.edu
Professor Nolan is available by appointment only. She can be reached at mnolan@berkeley.edu
Faculty Major Advisors
The Faculty Major Advisors (FMAs) serve as intellectual mentors for the academic year. FMAs are happy to talk with you about your intellectual interests, classes that fulfill or supplement those interests, academic and curricular choices, study after college and more.
FMAs cannot access student systems that carry out the technical and administrative processing of your records.
For the academic year 2025-2026, the department’s Faculty Major Advisors are Steven Lee and Maura Nolan
Peer Advising
Peer Advisors share their knowledge of and experiences with English major courses, extracurriculars and student groups and campus resources. For specific degree requirements/degree checks, please book an appointment with our Undergraduate Major Advisors. Peer Advisors are unavailable during campus official holidays/breaks. Peer Advisors are available for more general questions.
What topics can you get help with through Peer Advising?
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Help with using Assist.org(link is external) for transfer courses
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Assist with choosing classes to declare major or to complete major requirements
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Support navigating which campus office to contact with questions
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Guidance in whether to make an appointment with advising staff
To view available Peer Advisor drop-ins, visit the advising drop-in calendar
FAQs & Additional Resources:
Enrollment:
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Need help navigating enrollment through CalCentral?
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Need to add or drop a class?
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The Fall 2025 Add/Drop Deadline (September 25, 2025) has passed, and students are required to submit a late change of schedule (link is external)to enroll in courses.
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Spring 2026 Enrollment Issues?
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Please fill out the Spring 2026 Enrollment Issues/Inquiry Form(link is external)
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Questions about English R1A or R1B?
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If you are inquiring about an English R1A or R1B course, please read the R1A or R1B policy overview(link is external)
Declaring:
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To declare the major, go to Declaring the Major(link is external)
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To double major, visit this L&S page(link is external) to learn more about the process.
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To minor in English, visit our Minor page.